Youth held in Malwani for sexually assaulting friend

The Malwani police have arrested a youth for allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting a 16-year-old in the Abujwadi area on Saturday.

According to the police, the two apparently know each other from childhood. The girl had stepped out of her house saying she was going to a shop nearby, but apparently met up with the boy, Shehzad Khan, 19.

Abdulrauf Shaikh, senior police inspector, said that when the girl did not return home the parents approached the police. "We searched for the girl and found her at Khan's house.

"The girl's parents complained that Khan told her he wanted to marry her. They say he took advantage of her vulnerability, forced her to get intimate and sexually assaulted her," Shaikh said.

As the girl is a minor, Khan has been arrested on charges of kidnapping and rape and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

The girl, who is a student, has also undergone a medical examination. The youth is unemployed.